Re: Heat Riser problem

Posted by Ron Ferguson On 2007/8/15 14:15:38

Owen Dyneto Thanks for responding. My engine is a 282 straight 8. I've checked the fuel flow in the carb, no problem there. The former owner did a lot of strange things to the car. The carb has a auto choke but he didn't have the tube from the exhaust manifold on, so to start it when cold he had the mixture screws opened way to rich. I fixed that by installing a new tube and re-adjusted the mixture and auto choke but only drove it on short trips under 2 miles. The problem seemed solved. But now that I'm stretching its legs farther the problem is back. Summer is here so it warms up faster. I've had the block,radiator, and head flushed, and installed a 5 bladed flex fan. The overheating problem is gone completely.
I started noticing the engine stumbling on longer (5 mile) trips and have to wait till it cools down before it will fire up. After it warms up, there seems to be a loss of power. 35 MPH is top speed. While when its still cool it will exceed 55 MPH. I've checked the accuracy of the dash gage and it Ok. I have also tinkered with the timing and think its as good as I can get it without a scope. Unfortunately there are no shops in my area with mechanics that will tune it up. They either don't know how or can't make enough money fast enough to check it out. By elimination last night I discovered the heat riser problem. I don't know why it took me so long to consider it, but thats where I am now.